County Man Arrested For Rape, Assault

A Hustontown area man was jailed last Tuesday evening after he was accused of raping and sexually assaulting a young boy over a period of three years.

Dennis Lane
Dennis Eugene Lane of 476 Quarry Hill Road was arraigned before Magisterial District Judge Wendy Mellott on three counts each of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault, indecent assault; two counts of rape and one count of statutory sexual assault, indecent exposure, corruption of minors and unlawful contact with a minor. Judge Mellott set Lane’s bail at $100,000 before sending him to the Franklin County Prison for confinement.

The charges have been linked to ongoing sexual encounters between Lane, 62, and the boy, who is now 15 years old. The time line for the offenses is September 26, 2007, through November 5, 2010.

In a written statement provided to investigating officer Trooper Angela Roher of the Pennsylvania State Police, McConnellsburg substation, the victim stated, “I believe I am not the only one he has molested, and I believe I am not the last. I was physically hurt, emotionally hurt, spiritually hurt and my social life has definitely been negatively influenced by him ... I was just an ordinary kid and now I have memories that will never leave my head. I hope that I will be able to recuperate from this, but I don’t believe I will.”

In his victim/witness statement, the boy went on to say he didn’t share with anyone what was hap- pening to him because he feared Lane would “seriously hurt me or even kill me.”

“I am scared for my life, but I will do what it takes for justice to be served,” the boy wrote.

Trooper Roher’s investigation into the case began on November 7 when she interviewed the teen at the McConnellsburg barracks. The boy’s parents accompanied him to the station, and the mother reported an incident that occurred in March of 2010.

In an affidavit of probable cause, the mother is quoted as telling Roher that Lane had taken her son on an outof state trip to a veterans’ hospital. She had reportedly voiced her displeasure and was threatened, the charging documents said.

The affidavit states the mother said Lane told her, “If you get the police involved, you’ll be sorry.”

The interaction between Lane and the boy initially began when the young man and his father were enjoying a meal at Johnnie’s Diner. The boy was 11 at the time. Lane approached the duo and inquired if the boy could come to his house in Dublin Township and help him with wood, the affidavit maintains.

When the boy reached the age of 12, according to the affidavit, Lane began inappropriately touching him. On one occasion he is accused of holding the boy down. When asked why he did such a thing, Lane allegedly said he wanted to show the boy he would always be able to overpower him.

The sexual encounters reportedly occurred more during the summer months and with much less frequency during the school year.

A preliminary hearing originally scheduled for Monday, November 22, has been rescheduled for a later date.